Postpartum Contraceptive Use and Other Reproductive Health Outcomes Among CenteringPregnancy Group Prenatal Care Participants.

Background: CenteringPregnancy® is a model of group prenatal care (PNC) that reduces preterm birth and increases patient satisfaction. Less is known about postpartum outcomes. Methods: This study aimed to evaluate whether CenteringPregnancy participants have more favorable postpartum reproductive health outcomes compared with traditional PNC participants. Our primary outcome was utilization of long-acting reversible contraception (LARC). As secondary outcomes, we examined breastfeeding at the postpartum visit, follow-up at the postpartum visit, and rapid repeat pregnancy. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 422 women who received PNC and delivered at tertiary care hospital in Atlanta, Georgia between 2011 and 2015. Participants were eligible to participate if they were enrolled in Medicaid and received at least three PNC visits with a Certified Nurse Midwife in either CenteringPregnancy ( n  = 248) or traditional PNC ( n  = 174). Demographic and clinical data were abstracted from the electronic medical record. Multivariable log binomial regression was used to compare CenteringPregnancy participants and women who received traditional PNC. Results: One quarter of women (26%) chose LARC for postpartum contraception. There was no difference in overall contraceptive uptake between CenteringPregnancy and traditional PNC groups. CenteringPregnancy participants were 70% more likely to use LARC postpartum compared with women receiving traditional PNC (adjusted relative risk [aRR] 1.76; p  < 0.01). CenteringPregnancy participants were significantly more likely to initiate breastfeeding before hospital discharge (aRR 1.14, p  = 0.01) and to report exclusive breastfeeding at the postpartum visit (relative risk [RR] 2.54; p  < 0.01). Women in the CenteringPregnancy group were marginally more likely to report any breastfeeding at the postpartum visit and to attend the postpartum visit (RR 1.31, p  = 0.05 and RR 1.17, p  = 0.05 respectively), but were no less likely to have a rapid repeat pregnancy (RR 0.90, p  = 0.57). Conclusions: Women in CenteringPregnancy groups had increased uptake of LARC compared with a similar cohort of women in traditional PNC. Other potential benefits of CenteringPregnancy, including breastfeeding and attendance at the postpartum visit require further study.